The LaGrange Area

The LaGrange Area

Empowering Voters - Defending Democracy

The League of Women Voters is a political organization that neither supports nor opposes candidates or parties and encourages informed and active participation in government. It influences public policy through education and advocacy. The League of Women Voters of the La Grange Area serves the people of Brookfield, Burr Ridge, Countryside, Indian Head Park, Hinsdale, Hodgkins, La Grange, La Grange Highlands, La Grange Park, Riverside, Western Springs and Westchester.

The LaGrange League Is Live on Twitter and Instagram!

COVID 19 Update - LaGrange and Other LWV Events Are On-line

The LaGrange League and other area Leagues have been busy organizing these on-line events.

Fair Tax Presentation, Tues, May 12

"The Fair Tax: Everything You Need to Know" with Ann Courter is coming soon on Zoom. Join us Tuesday, May 12, 9:30-11:00am, by signing up here to attend. This educational presentation is designed for a general audience, so please invite friends and neighbors. Would you like a little homework between now and then? Check out the YesForFairTax Facebook page and look for LWV IL's April 14 post.

This 25-minute video, prepared by the Foreign Policy Association, addresses not only the human toll of climate change, but the political ramifications. How will our global weather patterns alter in the years ahead? What climatic changes will spur population shifts? How will vulnerable populations adjust? Which proposals in the U.S. are likely to be successful? How well have we prepared for the changes ahead? These are among the questions we can consider in the zoom discussion at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, May 13. We hope you will join us!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mA1ZxzkUHNI&t=436s

LWV OPRF Plant Sale Fundraiser, May 15-17

The LWV OPRF annual plant sale fundraiser with Good Earth Greenhouse, 7900 Madison, River Forest will take place the weekend of May 15-17. LWV OPRF will receive 15% of sales. Advance purchases can be made over the phone with curbside pick-ups. The deadline for these phone orders will be Monday, May 4. A list of available plants with prices will be forthcoming. Purchases will also be able to be made in person the weekend of the sale.

Save The Date: LWVLGA Annual Meeting, Mon, June 22, 7pm

Girl Scouts Learn About the Centennial of the 19th Amendment

On January 12th the League of Women Voters of the La Grange Area and Girl Scout Troops 51101 and 51169 met to celebrate the Centennial of the 19th Amendment giving women the right to vote. The Girl Scouts learned about the history of the suffrage movement and some of the fierce women that led the movement, about laws that help to promote equality, and the need to work towards future laws ensure women have equal rights.The event concluded by teaching how to complete a ballot and vote using ballots with actual voting booths donated by Cook County Board of Elections.

League Sponsors Great Decisions Foreign Policy Discussion Group On-line

In partnership with the Hinsdale Public Library, the LaGrange Area LWV is again sponsoring the Great Decisions program starting on Thursday, January 23rd at 7pm. Great Decisions is a program of readings and videos created by the Foreign Policy Association that serve as the basis of monthly discussions of important topics in foreign policy. Starting with the April meeting, and until further notice, Great Decisions will be conducted on Zoom. This year's topics and dates are as follows -

The sessions are open to the public, and are held on the 4th Thursday at 7pm over a Zoom connection. Materials are available at the Library. More information is available here.

La Grange LWV Registers 1000+ New Student Voters!

The League of Women Voters® of the La Grange Area registered over 1,000 new student voters in September. The League worked with area schools to host voter registration events in celebration of National Voter Registration Day, a nationwide holiday celebrated on the fourth Tuesday of every September. Over 75 volunteers, including League and community members, students, teachers and staff, held 5 events at Lyons Township High School in La Grange, Proviso Township High Schools in Hillside and Maywood, Nazareth Academy in La Grange Park, and DePaul University in Lincoln Park.

LWV La Grange Sponsors Program On the Illinois Firearms Restraining Order

On September 18, LWVLGA co-sponsored a program describing legislation to make our communities safer. The Firearms Restraining Order allows a family/household member or local law enforcement to petition for a court order to temporarily remove firearms from an individual exhibiting risky behavior. You can view a video of the program here.

LaGrange Area LWV Announces Goals for 2019-20

The Lagrange Area League of Women Voters will employ the tenets and positions of the League of Women Voters to encourage the active, knowledgeable participation of the residents of our communities in the political process. We intend to actively work with LWVUS, LWVIL, Cook County League, and ILOs to identify and pursue improvements in our government at all levels.

The projects the League of Women Voters of the LaGrange Area will actively work on in 2019-2010 will include:

Pursue the elimination of the Lyons Township School Treasurer Office

Actively campaign for reasonable gun control measures

Partner with local community groups on issues of common interest

Cook County LWV Releases Updated Report on Pre-Trial Systems

With LaGrange LWV member Jan Goldberg as co-chair, the Criminal Justice Interest Group of the Cook County LWV has released a comprehensive update of its 2015 report on Pre-trial Systems in Cook County. In the original report, the group made11 recommendations to help ensure that pretrial operations are fairly and equitably administered within the criminal justice system of Cook County. These recommendations were put forth in order to ensure that pretrial systems efficiently and effectively serve the accused and the citizenry of Cook County. The purpose of this updated report is to summarize the progress made on each of these recommendations and to assess what further steps our criminal justice interest group needs to be take in order to further each goal. Download the complete report here.

LaGrange League Hosts Program on Gun Violence

More than 50 local residents braved the wind and cold for a program on the impact of gun violence on our communities. Participating were Dr. Mark Cichon, Professor and Chairman, Dept. of Emergency Medicine, Loyola Medical Center, Officer Tim Andries, La Grange Police Dept. and LTHS North Campus School Resource Officer, Theresa Hirstein, LTHS Social Studies Teacher; and Pat Callahan, LTHS Teaching Assistant: Both Sandy Hook Promise Leaders and SAVE Co‐sponsors. See the video here.

League of Women Voters of the La Grange Area Sponsors Training Event for New Deputy Voting Registrars

The League of Women Voters® of the La Grange Area (LWVLGA), along with the La Grange Public Library, sponsored a deputy voter registrar training at the La Grange Public Library.

Twenty-seven volunteers were sworn in and can now register any Illinois citizen to vote in the midterm election on November 6th. Individuals who serve as deputy registrars play a vital role in the democratic process by registering people to vote, encouraging voter participation and enhancing the electoral process.

League Hosts Program on Legalizing Marijuana

Over 150 people crowded into the La Grange Village Hall to listen to an expert panel discussion on the pros and cons of legalizing marijuana in Illinois. The "Great Marijuana Debate" was co-sponsored by the League of Women Voters of the La Grange Area and the Coalition for a Drug Free Lyons Township. Panelists included Heather A. Steans, Illinois State Senator – 7th District, Jim Durkin, Illinois House Minority Leader, Will Jones, SAM Communications Outreach Associate, Dr. Aaron Weiner, Director of Addictions (Linden Oaks), Reverend Alexander Sharp, Executive Director, Clergy for a New Drug Policy, and Chelsea Laliberte Barnes, MSSA, Director/Cofounder, Live4Lali Inc. Read all about the debate in the Doings article. And watch a video of the debate here!

Now Pay Your League Dues Online!

Our Newsletter

Ever Wonder Who Our Leaders Are?

Many of us have been asking for a listing of elected officials. If you go to our page on Facebook, select TOWN HALL from the sidebar and it will bring up all your representatives based on your address.

If you want a listing of phone numbers, websites, email addresses and mailing addresses for more than 4,000 federal, state, county and local officials elected in Cook County, the Cook County Clerk has just completed the 2017 Directory of Elected Officials (DOEO). Click here to access the DOEO and download a PDF copy of the document.

College of Dupage - Observer Report

Your LWV Coalition for College of Dupage observers will be paying close attention to further developments between the faculty and the Board at future meetings. The faculty association does not strike us as a group that will give up easily. Just when things seemed quite peaceful and calm, this controversy about faculty hiring pops up. One can't help but remember that it was a letter from the faculty association to the Board of Trustees in September 2014 about a vote of no confidence in President Breuder which led directly to the election of the Clean Slate candidates in April 2015. Click here for the current report.

Get LWV Action Alerts on your Mobile Device Using this New App!

The LWV of NYC has partnered with the Voices app, which is a mobile platform for different advocacy groups, including the ACLU and the National Organization for Women, to publish calls to action.